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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (July 3, 2017)
DailyAstorian.com // MONDAY, JULY 3, 2017 145TH YEAR, NO. 1 Power blips draw metal balloon warnings ONE DOLLAR LANE COUNTY’S EMERY WINS MISS OREGON CROWNING GLORY Firefi ghters see more risk in illegal fi reworks By R.J. MARX The Daily Astorian SEASIDE — The city’s Fourth of July celebration in 2015 saw plenty of fi reworks, but one piece of pyrotechnics went awry. Sheila Holden, the Pacifi c Power spokes- woman at the time, called it “Mylargate.” When a metal-coated balloon made contact with a Pacifi c Power substation, sparks fl ew and the South County went dark for hours, disrupting celebrations, picnics and parades. More than 8,000 customers were affected by a metallic-skinned helium balloon that got away, according to Pacifi c Power. Crews found “unmistakable red, white and blue Mylar shreds” when doing repairs . The balloon from a nearby celebra- tion caused a main substation transformer to short circuit near Seaside Factory Outlet Center. Other equipment was also damaged on nearby poles. See WARNINGS, Page 7A Tone softens in dam feud Warrenton, water district want fi nal resolution By DERRICK DePLEDGE The Daily Astorian WARRENTON — Six months after declaring an emergency over the Eighth Street Dam, Warrenton has toned down bra- zen talk of ownership and legal threats while waiting for federal advice on what to do next. The city asked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in December whether the small, 54-year-old dam over the Skipanon River should be restored for fl ood control. The city also wanted the Army Corps to inves- tigate whether the Skipanon Water Control District, which has managed the dam since it was built with the help of the federal govern- ment in 1963, improperly removed tide gates on the aging structure. Warrenton had threatened to sue the water district to take control of the dam and reinstall the tide gates. A Portland attorney hired by the city initially claimed Warrenton owned the dam, then, after more research, described it as a federal asset integral to the city’s levee system. Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Harley Emery, left, is crowned Miss Oregon 2017 by Miss Oregon 2016 Alexis Mather at the Miss Oregon Scholarship Program Saturday at the Seaside Civic and Convention Center. More photos online at DailyAstorian.com By KAELIA NEAL The Daily Astorian fter waiting in suspense next to the top-fi ve c ontestants, Harley Emery of Lane County was “in shock” to hear her name called as Miss Oregon 2017. “I’m so excited. I’m just so thrilled,” Emery said Saturday during the 70th annual Miss Oregon p ageant. “I stood there for a second thinking, ‘Wait, what just happened?’” Emery said she has competed in pageants for fi ve years. She will represent Oregon at the Miss America pageant in Septem- ber in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Twenty c ontestants competed in swimwear, talent , interview and other categories to highlight their personal successes and beliefs . A Miss Oregon 2016 Alexis Mather accepts roses from members of the audience as she takes the last walk of her reign during Saturday’s Miss Oregon Scholarship Program in Seaside. See MISS OREGON, Page 7A See DAM, Page 7A Gym rat drawn back to the North Coast Former MMA fi ghter devotes energy to fi tness ra Evansen has devoted his life to fi tness. A school dropout, who was briefl y homeless as a young man, Evansen found his confi - dence as a gym rat, testing him- self through taekwondo and mixed martial arts. Evansen, now 34, owns Val- halla Alpha Fit Gym in Gear- hart, where classes such as power lifting, boxing, wrestling and Zumba are offered. “Fitness is a large pie and we cover a large part of it,” I Evansen said. The gym has classes Mon- day through Friday, though there is 24-hour access for members. On Wednesdays, Spanish Spoken Alpha Fit allows people to train with Spanish translation. Children as young as 6 can also train. A Cannon Beach native and an only child, fi tness has always been a big part of Evansen’s life. “When I was younger, I was always surfi ng,” he said. But the road to Evansen’s success was not always smooth. He dropped out of school in the seventh grade, and ran around with an older group of boys that led to some trouble. Eventu- ally, when Evansen turned 18, he began working at Cleanline Surf Shop in Seaside. Evansen said he decided to make a bold move and abruptly fl ed to California with his best friend where they had no place to stay. After about eight months of being home- less, Evansen decided enough was enough. He left the streets and moved to Seattle with his father, where he was introduced Kaelia Neal/The Daily Astorian See EVANSEN, Page 7A Ira Evansen racks the barbell after an overhead squat at Valhalla Alpha Fit Gym. Hours: Everyday 9am - 7pm Available for all of your routine healthcare needs, not just for emergency situations! 2120 Exchange Street, Suite 111 Astoria, Oregon 503-325-0333 www.urgentcarenwastoria.com We accept most insurances, off er a cash discount and also acept the Oregon Health Plan and Medicare. Located in the Park Medical Buidling East on Exchange Street
